Wiener gets national award for work in rehabilitation

July 28, 2004

KALAMAZOO--Dr. William R. Wiener, dean of the Graduate College
at Western Michigan University, has won the nation's top award
for service to those who are blind or visually impaired.

Wiener is the 2004 winner of the Ambrose M. Shotwell Memorial
Award. Presented by the Association for Education and Rehabilitation
of the Blind and Visually Impaired, the lifetime achievement
honor was awarded July 16 at AER's annual meeting in Orlando,
Fla.

The Shotwell Award, named for an early 20th-century pioneer
in the field, was established in 1939 to honor individuals whose
leadership contributions at the national and international level
have affected the personal adjustment and rehabilitation of persons
who are blind or visually impaired. Previous award winners include
Helen Keller, as well as three people responsible for founding
WMU's groundbreaking program in the field. Before assuming his
current post, Wiener served for 14 years as chairperson of WMU's
Department of Blindness and Low Vision Studies, and he remains
active in research and professional service in the discipline.

"This was such a humbling experience," says Wiener,
who as past president of AER presided over several such award
ceremonies. "I've always felt I've received much more back
from the field than I was ever able to give it, but happily,
my colleagues don't seem to agree with my assessment."

A number of contributions made by Wiener to the profession
were singled out by AER as the reasons for the honor. They include
his contributions to the overall study of blindness and his work
in the area of orientation and mobility--known as O&M. Wiener
has led the O&M programs at both Cleveland State University
and WMU. At WMU, he expanded his service to people with handicaps
through the creation of a new academic discipline aimed at providing
travel instruction for people with disabilities. After creating
a curriculum and set of standards for travel instruction, he
founded the Association for Travel Instruction and today serves
as president-elect of that national organization.

The past head of the editorial board of the Journal of Visual
Impairment and Blindness, Wiener also is the author of more than
50 articles and the editor of two books. His textbook, "Foundations
of Orientation and Mobility," is used in literally all university
programs in the field. In addition, he currently serves as a
board member for the American Foundation for the Blind, and he
is a past board member of the National Council on Rehabilitation
Education.

Wiener has developed certification examinations for O&M
professionals, an Easter Seals curriculum for accessible pedestrian
signals and a model program for O&M assistants. He also led
the AER committee that formulated a code of ethics for professionals
in orientation and mobility.

Honored repeatedly in the past for his contributions, Wiener
says the Shotwell Award represents the pinnacle for someone in
the field of blindness. He is the fourth person connected to
the WMU program to receive the award. Earlier recipients include
Donald Blasch and Stanley Suterko, who together established the
University's program in 1961 and served as director and assistant
director, respectively. Another honoree was Russell Williams,
who headed the Veterans Administration's blind rehabilitation
efforts and encouraged Blasch to begin the WMU graduate training
program.

"It is unprecedented for an institution to have so many
people honored by AER," says Wiener. "But at the same
time, it is understandable. WMU really helped start the fields
of rehabilitation teaching, orientation and mobility, and we
have the oldest program in existence."

Wiener first came to WMU in 1986 as chairperson of the Department
of Blindness and Low Vision Studies. He earned bachelor's and
master's degrees from Cleveland State in 1969 and 1978, respectively,
a second master's degree from WMU in 1970 and a doctoral degree
from Kent State University in 1985.